A little nude with your food

Inside every budding actor there's a passion for life, drama, and putting little chocolate drawings on top of mochaccinos. For a place where acting and nourishment are better intertwined, try Burlesque in Your Kitchen.

Officially launching tomorrow at Camden's Proud Kitchen, BIYK is naughty-ing up its NY-style canteen dining by having a plethora of cabaret- and circus-style performers not just up on stage, but also acting as staff, so for once, calling the maitre d' a "complete clown" could be considered a compliment. All this means you can "expect to be seated by contortionists, poured delicious wines by jugglers, and have your meal brought to you by actors"; you'll also get drinks from flaring/dancing bartenders, who along with the rest will soon collaborate on "plotlines" involving the diners themselves -- here's hoping yours doesn't involve "Falling Prey to Cruelty of Misfortune". The actual stage will see scantily/not-at-all clad beauties (launch night = Kiki Kaboom & Beatrix von Bourbon) wandering on and off all evening to perform a variety of acts, with a live soundtrack provided by acoustic, swing, folk, and jazz outfits, and even a "resident harpist", who must really need the lute.

The feasting at least will thankfully not be in the hands of a circus act, but a Michelin-trained chef, whose summer menu has the likes of steamed mussels w/ cider & bacon, beer-battered hake, and rice pudding w/ dulce de leche, a caramel-like sauce actually based on milk -- saving the actors from the depressing prospect of once again playing with chocolate.